The door sighed open and the room forgot to breathe.
Tsukishiro crossed the threshold with the soft economy of someone who never needed to announce himself. The acting chairman's suit held a crease like a sharpened line; his gaze did the same, sliding over the semicircle of chairs—Hōsen coiled and grinning, Nanase still as a pond at night, Ishigami composed, Utomiya unreadable, Ichika laced with mischief, Nagumo let the door hush closed and took up a watchful post, a faint, politic smile pinned in place.
For a beat, no one moved. The only sound was the tick of the wall clock and the low whir of the ceiling vent. Tsukishiro set a thin folder on the desk and looked up. His eyes drifted, impersonal, professional—then passed over Me once with a fractional pause that might have been a trick of the light. If it was an acknowledgment, it was the kind that left no fingerprints.
"Thank you for coming.." Tsukishiro said, voice even. "This will be brief."
Chairs creaked as they settled. I kept my breathing slow and my face without edges.
"You were called.." Tsukishiro went on, "because you are representatives and problem-solvers. The academy occasionally confronts.... individuals whose presence disturbs the balance we cultivate. Addressing such anomalies requires discretion and results."
His eyes gain a glint.
"A second-year," he said, "meets that definition. His name is Ayanokōji Kiyotaka."
The name, dropped without flourish, drew tiny ripples. Nanase's jaw ticked, small as a heartbeat. Ichika's eyes warmed into a delighted smile she didn't bother to hide. I did not blink. I have seen this reaction in different rooms with different uniforms—how a single name could change air pressure...
"Your mandate," Tsukishiro continues, "is to secure his expulsion before year's end."
He didn't raise his voice, but the words slotted into place like a bolt. He let them sit.
"Your Incentive: twenty million private points, disbursed to those responsible. This Means any means within the regulations—strategic engineering of exams; inducement; psychological pressure; coordination across years. The next special exam will present opportunities, but the bounty remains valid through the final day of the year."
20 million points...
What a ridiculous amount.. all for one boy.
That got the people who didn't know Ayanokōji more interested. Ishigami and Utomiya's attentions have both been caught.
And Hōsen... he was smiling wider than he was before.
Another pass of his gaze around the room. When it crossed me again, it was as neutral as the clock's tick. Seen; not called.
"Discretion is not optional," he said. "This briefing is off the record. Disclosure will result in sanctions, including point forfeiture. You also may enlist one confidant from your respective classes to aid you. Choose with care."
He gestured; a prompt appeared on each of their devices. Silent, they accepted the nondisclosure with fingerprints and face scans. Tsukishiro's eyes moved as they signed, pausing a breath when my confirmation lit green, then moving on as if nothing at all had happened.
"Questions," he said. It wasn't an invitation; it was a timer.
Ishigami raised two fingers a precise inch. "Define the acceptable scope of expulsion," he said. "Academic failure? Conduct?"
"Any outcome codified by school rules," Tsukishiro replied. "Grades, violations, accumulation of demerits—if it results in expulsion and remains within policy, it qualifies."
Hōsen clicked his tongue. "So if he snaps and throws the first punch—"
"It will not be because you struck first," Tsukishiro said without looking at him. "If your...proximity contributes, be sure your conduct is above reproach."
Nanase's voice was level. "Timeline flexibility?"
"The bounty is most cleanly resolved earlier. But the year's end is the outer bound."
Ichika tilted her head, sweet as syrup. "And if someone loses interest, Acting Chairman?"
"Then that someone has chosen a side." Tsukishiro said coldly.
Nagumo cleared his throat lightly. "Big prize freshman" he said, smiling in a way that included everyone and no one. "Big target. Seems things are getting intresting."
His eyes made a leisurely circuit and rested an extra beat on Me, not hostile, merely curious—as if testing the glass of an aquarium. Tsukishiro didn't follow the look. He kept the room in his hand.
"You were selected," he said, "for capacity, not noise. Do not mistake my brevity for leniency. I'm not here to manage your egos."
Silence, clean as polished wood.
"If there are no further questions," he said, "you understand your task."
He closed the thin folder he had never opened. The small click of paper meeting paper sounded like a signature.
Chairs scraped again. The room exhaled.
Ishigami stood first, bowed in a motion so precise it felt measured to the millimeter, and left without turning his head. Utomiya rose a breath later, gave a single, respectful nod toward no one in particular, and followed in a smooth step that did not disturb the air. Nanase gathered her phone and stylus with the efficiency of a surgeon cleaning a tray; she left without looking at anyone, the line of her shoulders saying she already had a plan. Ichika lingered, drifting past my chair with a sly smile.
Hōsen sprawled his legs, then looked at me up and down with a lazy malice. Then he said,
"Oi shrimp what's the matter piss your pants?" He mocks.
I, being very polite, did not hear him. This pissed him off, much to my pleasure, as he glares at me with rage.
He stood, gave me a look that promised later problems. Then threw his jacket over his shoulder, and swaggered out humming an ugly tune.
Nagumo peeled off the wall and gave Tsukishiro the kind of nod two men exchange when the show is over and the work begins. The acting chairman returned it, then drew a line with his eyes that dismissed the room.
I stayed seated for a count of five. Longer than anyone else.
Tsukishiro busied himself with nothing in particular—the way powerful men did when they wanted you to understand you were no longer here. He didn't look up as I rose, pushed my chair back to perfect alignment, and left with the soft step of someone who had been trained to leave no trace.
The corridor outside was cooler. The windows turned the late-afternoon sky into sheets of diluted gold. Down the hall, the building breathed: footfalls, distant voices, a locker door clapping shut. My reflection drifted over the glass as I walked— uniform, tidy hair, a face that had learned to be read as friendly by default.
I paused at an alcove and let my head rest, just for a moment, against the cool metal of a pillar. My pulse had barely moved during the briefing; now it was a fraction faster.
Observe first. Decide later.
I cataloged the variables like cards: Nanase's contained anger; Hōsen's predictability; Ichika's dangerous joy; Nagumo's... curiosity that was not yet a knife; the Acting Chairman's insistence on clean hands and dirty results. The next special exam: a funnel. The bounty's end date: a clock.
And Kiyotaka—no anomaly, not to Me. Just a boy whose shape the room insisted on making into a problem.
I pushed off the pillar and started toward the stairwell. The fluorescent tubes above purred; the handrail under his palm was smooth from a thousand students who thought they were making choices.
Halfway down the empty flight, I stopped again and looked through the slit of glass that cut the stairwell wall. The meeting room door, three turns away, had already been swallowed by the corridor's polite architecture. No one watching would have seen anything unusual—just a handful of students leaving a room, a teacher at a desk, the president of the student council leaning against a wall, smiling.
I watched my own faint reflection windowed in the glass, pale over the hallway's long perspective. Not singled out. But seen.
I exhaled once, slow, and kept moving.
The world composed itself into schedules: second-years changing classrooms, first-years recalibrating plans, the air full of names murmurs. I slid into the current without making a ripple, some kid heading nowhere special. My phone buzzed in my pocket.
I didn't open it.
I pressed my thumb and forefinger into the hollow below my eyes until a dull ache gave me back my body. A habit from long ago, return to the room, return to the skin. Then I straightened and walked toward the exit, head slightly bowed, the picture of a B-class first-year with ordinary concerns.
—
The sun hit the courtyard at just the right angle—warm enough to sting my eyelids but not enough to make me move. The breeze was steady, shaking the leaves just enough to make the silence tolerable.
Since the meeting I had been just.... Sitting here.. watching...
Students were scattered everywhere—talking, laughing, shopping. The kind of background noise that made this school seem normal. But I couldn't forget the meeting.
That bounty changed everything. Twenty million points was enough to make half the school start sharpening their knives. He might as well have poured gasoline on the whole campus and lit a match.
I exhaled slowly, rubbing my thumb over the edge of my sleeve.
I expected this place to be... somewhat normal. A small taste of freedom. But the moment Tsukishiro stepped in, it was like the White Room all over again—orders disguised as opportunities, control disguised as freedom.
My chest felt heavy just thinking about it.
I shake it off and look back at the scenery. I took in the beautiful green trees and the sounds of birds chirping and nature.
It was so peaceful... it felt for a second almost as if the darkness in my life never even existed.
It was so beautiful out...
So free...
Then..... a shadow appeared over my form
"Yagami~."
A familiar voice practically whispered into my ear. I didn't even have time to turn before she leaned in close, her chin nearly brushing my shoulder.
"...Ever heard of personal space?" I muttered.
Ichika smiled, stepping around the bench to sit next to me. Her expression was as playful as ever, a mix of curiosity and amusement.
"Space is boring," she said simply.
"I'd like to try it sometime."
She gave a soft laugh and leaned back, arms stretched behind her. For a while, she didn't say anything. The two of us just sat there, watching a few students pass by.
"You looked like your brain was melting," she said after a bit.
"Just admiring the scenery."
"That's dangerous you know, might get too attached~" she teased.
She was kind of right...
"I'll take my chances." I say.
She tilted her head, watching me from the corner of her eye. "You've been quiet since the meeting. Not gonna talk about it?"
"Nope, Trying to enjoy life and the sunshine right now." I say putting my hands behind my head.
"Right....." she said, her voice dripping with disbelief. "Because you definitely strike me as a sunshine kind of guy."
I didn't answer. She smiled slyly.
"Hmm..., just what's going through that head Yagami-kun?"
I sighed, leaning forward, elbows on my knees. "What do you want, Ichika?"
She shrugged. "Nothing. Just thought you might want company. Or maybe I was bored. Hard to tell."
"Go bother Hōsen," I said.
"Mm, no thanks. He smells like trouble."
"He is trouble."
"Exactly," she said lightly. "I prefer talking to people who can actually hold a conversation."
I glanced at her. "Not exactly sure I count."
"You do," she said easily. "You just don't really try."
That made me huff a little. "You think too highly of me you know?"
"Someone has to," she said, smiling faintly.
For a moment, she looked content—quiet, even. The playful spark in her eyes dimmed slightly. Maybe she was thinking about the same thing I was.
The meeting.
It hung between us like smoke. We didn't talk about it directly, but we didn't have to. She knew what I was sent here to do, what she was also sent here to do.
"You didn't flinch at Housen's provocations," she said suddenly.
"Obviously, I have seen much worse."
"I know," she said, her tone softer now. "Still. You looked... calm."
"Would it have helped if I panicked?" I raised a brow.
She laughed quietly. "Guess not."
Her eyes shifted to the side, watching a group of first-years walking down the path. "You already made an enemy..." she said.
"Hōsen?"
"Yep, looks Like he wanted to see what you'd do."
"He's the type who measures people by fights. I'm not interested."
Yet.....
"Boo boring...," she said mock dissapointed putting her thumbs down in disapproval.
I just rolled my eyes
We both knew Hōsen wasn't going to let it go. Not after I stood up to him twice. The guy had a short fuse, and I'd probably just made his list.
Ichika looked at me curiously. "You're too relaxed, you know that? You don't even pretend to be worried."
"I don't see anything to be worried about."
"What about Kiyotaka?" She asked
"...What about him?" I look at her
"You think he's the real deal..?" She asked looking back
The real deal huh...
I nodded "Yeah he definitely is no doubt, It's unmistakable"
"Oh did you see him?~"
I nodded
Her lips twitched like she was holding back another laugh. Then she reached into her pocket, pulled out a small candy, and unwrapped it. The scent of lemon briefly cut through the air before she popped it in her mouth.
She turned her head slightly. "So what are you gonna do?"
"About what?"
"The chaos that's about to happen," she said casually.
"For now... I'll just Watch it," I said.
"That's all?"
"Maybe I'll step around it who knows"
She looked like she wanted to roll her eyes but didn't. "Whatever you say, Rebel-kun~"
"Oi...."
There was a beat of quiet. The breeze rustled the leaves again. Ichika's hair moved slightly with it, and I caught the faintest whiff of her shampoo. She always smelled like something clean, like citrus and paper.
For a while, we sat in silence again. It wasn't uncomfortable, though. She had that strange way of making stillness feel okay.
Finally, she spoke again. "You think Tsukishiro's serious about this?"
I turned to look at her. "Of course he is."
She mock sighed. "Jeez~ Then this year's going to be a mess."
"It already is."
She smirked. "You don't seem too stressed about it, though. You've been through worse, right?"
I gave her a annoyed sideways glance..
"Thought so~"
Her smirk returned, but it was softer this time. More real.
"Still," she said after a pause. "Try not to die, okay?"
"Oi, that's dramatic, at worst I'll be expelled...."
I then thought again...
"Okay maybe Housen might try to" I muttered
"More like definitely will~"
She stood up, stretching a little. "You know, for someone who supposedly doesn't care about people, you sure attract a lot of them."
"What..? No I don't ."
"You do," she said with a grin. "They just don't know it yet."
"What are you a damn prophet?" I grumbled
"Nope, I just know you super duper well~" she put up a finger.
Ugh... what a weirdo.
If there was anyone who could catch you off guard with words it was Ichika...
"Anyway..." she said standing up glancing at me
She turned to leave, walking a few steps before glancing back over her shoulder. "See you around, Yagami-kun."
"Yeah...."
"Don't get lost in your thoughts again," she added.
"I'll try not to."
"Liar."
And with that, she walked off, waving lazily before disappearing around the hedge.
I let out a quiet breath and leaned back again.
The courtyard was just as peaceful as before, but it felt different now. Quieter, maybe. Or maybe I was just overthinking it again.
Tsukishiro's "opportunity" had turned the entire academy into a powder keg. Everyone who'd been in that room was already plotting, moving pieces I couldn't see yet.
But what unsettled me most wasn't them—it was me.
For the first time in years, I didn't know what to do
I rubbed the back of my neck and looked up at the sky again.
"This is gonna get messy..." I muttered.
The sun was still bright. Too bright.
I stood, brushed the dust from my uniform, and started toward the dorms. Each step felt heavier than the last.
Somewhere behind me, the wind picked up, carrying faint laughter from the distance. I didn't turn around.
__
(Gonna start working more on this fic again, just a lot of little intricate stuff to remember with this light novel. Also gonna start making the chapters around 5k-8k words.)